Sask. high court upholds decision to not pay insurance to estate of man who died of drug overdose
CBC
Val Jantzen is angry that two insurance companies continued to take premiums from her son while knowing that he was addicted to cocaine, and then denied coverage after he died of a cocaine overdose in 2018.
"They were well aware of his lifestyle, his addiction," she said in an interview.
"They didn't do anything about it. They just continued to take his premiums. They never addressed it. They didn't put an addendum on his insurance policy."
Val's son Josh Jantzen had two policies, one for mortgage insurance and one for a line of credit, to ensure those debts would be paid out in the event of his death.
Val is also disappointed that judges at Court of King's Bench and the Saskatchewan's Court of Appeal both sided with the insurers when she went to court to try and force the companies to pay.
The Court of Appeal decision was written by Justice Robert Leurer and published earlier this month.
Val is not the only one disappointed.
"I think it's just another example of how we continue to criminalize substance use disorders in our country and around the world," said Kayla DeMong, executive director of Prairie Harm Reduction.
"We recognize the underlying issues that often push somebody into substance use disorder, but when it comes down to it we're making moralistic judgments on a person and criminalizing what should be treated as a health issue."
Josh, 37, was found dead in his home in Saskatoon on Feb. 1, 2018. The autopsy concluded that he had a fatal amount of alcohol and cocaine in his system.
Josh had struggled with addictions for at least a decade, according to his mother. He worked at a potash mine and had gone through rehab three times, but continued to relapse.
Val was quick to point out that her son was not completely defined by his addictions. He grew up in a middle-class Saskatoon home with three brothers. He played sports, rode motorcycles, and went hunting and fishing. Josh worked hard, paid his bills and had a serious relationship.
Josh was self-aware enough to seek help on his own and conscientious enough to not lie about his struggles when he got insurance, according to Val.
The Court of Appeal ruled that "the insurers properly denied coverage because Mr. Jantzen died as a result of committing the crime of possession of the cocaine that he consumed."
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